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MenuHomeUpfront Now Up Books Towns Structures People Firms Lexicon | PERCIK, WolfBorn: 1901 06 25ArchitectSACA:Reg No: 568 Year registered: 1934 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
DipArch 1924 (AA); DipTP 1946 (Witwatersrand) Was born in Sosnowice in Poland, a Russian subject. His parents moved to Buenos Aires in 1912 but returned to Europe in 1914, settling in London. Percik attended the Marylebone Grammar School before being apprenticed to AW Moore, FRIBA, for three years. During his third year he joined the Architectural Association, received a post-graduate prize at the end of the 3rd year and passed the examinations for the Diploma a few months before the age of 21 in 1922. In 1923 he became a naturalised British subject and obtained full citizenship on 24 November 1924. In April 1922 he started work in Sir Herbert BAKER's office (his ARIBA nomination papers (1925) state June 1922) and worked there until 1933, during the period of depression. Work in Baker's office included Barclays Bank, Glyn Mills Bank in Fenchurch St, the Bank of England, and the Secretariat Buildings in New Delhi (in charge of the circular Houses of Parliament in New Delhi for the last two years until completion); he found Baker's partner AT SCOTT, a fine architect and an admirable person for whom to work. In 1925 he was elected an Associate member of the RIBA. Percik left Baker's office in 1933 and came to South Africa, arriving in Johannesburg in December 1933. He joined the Institute of South African Architects in 1934 and set up practice on his own account in Johannesburg, practising alone until 1959 when he entered into partnership with A SACKS from 1959 to 1962 (cf W PERCIK & A SACKS). He then returned to work alone until his retirement in about 1975. Percik studied town planning under Professor PEARSE and obtained his Diploma in Town Planning from the University of the Witwatersrand in August 1946. Percik was responsible for the design of a number of houses, including his own in Eckstein St, Observatory Extension, Johannesburg (1946) and designed the Ambassador Hotel in Braamfontein (1946/1947) considered a 'blueprint for the future' (Hotel Review 1947), a factory near Germiston, for knitting, wool processing and dyeing, where building regulations were altered to permit rooms to be built for special purposes without window ventilation; a clothing factory near Germiston and in Johannesburg a biltong factory for Mr Cocotas in Fordsburg (n.d.); Lucy's Motors, a Fiat agency with 100' (30.48m) steel roof spans and no columns internally. Percik was the architect responsible for the first nursery school next to the Yeoville synagogue and for a number of other nursery schools; Richard NEUTRA in 1966 wrote PERCIK a letter of congratulations on the Hebrew Nursery School at Springs. PERCIK's innovative design required changes in the building bye-laws and regulations on several occasions. This is possibly the same Percik who supervised the building of the Palmerston Hotel (now Campanile) for G NOICK in 1934. ARIBA 1936; ISAA 1934; TPIA 1934. (ARIBA nom papers (1934) 3865; ISAA mem list; Katz 1990; Percik 1990; SAAR Jan 1934:23; SAAR Feb 1934:65) Submitted an entry for the Competition for the new Prime Minister's Residence - unplaced. All truncated references not fully cited in 'References' are those of Joanna Walker's original text and cited in full in the 'Bibliography' entry of the Lexicon. List of projects With photographs With notes
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